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Friday, January 25, 2013

Texas Approves Charters for Affluent Anglos

Long-time KSN&C readers may recall that I support (albeit weakly) a Kentucky charter school law that permits charters in a narrow set of circumstances - where long-term failure has attended certain public schools and the local school boards have not figured out a way to deliver equal educational opportunity for poor kids. That position forces me to oppose efforts by charter promoters in more case than not. Efforts to allow charter schools in Kentucky have always left the door open to what I consider to be abuses of the system at the expense of the children at large - such as a charter set up to compete with already successful schools, or ones that could open the door to religious segregation. The story below is Exhibit A. It's what I believe many of Kentucky's charter promoters really want - even though they spend all of their time talking about the poor minority children they hope to protect (while railing against providing medical coverage for the same folks). Diane Ravitch asked the right question about charters. Do Affluent White Neighborhoods Need Charter Schools?

Wall Street gang now offer education choices

About a quarter
of the kids in the San Antonio Independent School District attend
charter schools. Most are the low-income, minority students we think
about when we imagine providing innovative opportunities for kids stuck
in failing public schools in bad neighborhoods. For a long time, school
reform has targeted only kids from poor families. You know, the lucky
ones who get those free lunches.

Starting this fall, though, no longer will Texas exclude upper-middle
class white kids like mine from the gravy train of school choice. Last
November, the State Board of Education approved a charter allowing Great Hearts Academies to open a school in North San Antonio, the wealthier, whiter section of a majority-Hispanic city.

Great Hearts Academies operates out of Arizona, where they survive
not just on public funding that would normally go to public schools but also
on mandatory fees as well as contributions from students’ families,
pricing Great Hearts out of reach for most San Antonio families. In
other words, upper-middle class Anglos are finally getting a
taxpayer-subsidized private school. Our long nightmare of being stuck in
high-performing, better-funded public schools is almost over.

If that’s not what you have in mind when you think of school choice, you’re not alone. Great Hearts tried
this in Nashville, but the school board rejected the charter
application, arguing reasonably that creating a government-funded
private school to serve an affluent, white neighborhood constituted
segregation. It’s exactly what they’re planning in North San Antonio,
except our school board approved it.

Private tuition and public subsidies only provide enough money to pay
the teachers, buy textbooks and keep the lights on. To build schools,
you need to go into massive debt. But don’t worry, because our need to
borrow millions of dollars creates an investment opportunity for Wall
Street investment bankers. Apparently
charter schools are “a favorite cause of many of the wealthy founders
of New York hedge funds.” The word you’re probably looking for is
“yippee.”

Public school bonds are a safe investment, but low risk means lower reward, in this case an average 3% return on general-obligation funds used to raise money to build schools. But debt for charter schools runs an average of 3.8% higher
than general-obligation bonds, and charter schools even qualify for
federal tax credits under the Community Renewal Tax Relief Act of 2000.

As every investment prospectus says in small type, investments carry risk. In this case, 3.91% of charter-school bonds are in default versus 0.03% for public schools. And since 1992, 15% of charters have closed, including 52 in Texas.

“Many charter schools have expanded access to academic opportunities
for students in all types of communities, so we shouldn’t let tough
economic times bring them down,” said JPMorgan Chase Chairman and CEO Jamie Dimon.

This
is the same Jamie Dimon who thought mortgage-backed securities were
foolproof, who was forced to take $25 billion of our money in the bank
bailout, who wrongly foreclosed on military families, who overcharged 4,000 other military families by $2 million, and who then lost
$2 billion of our money in what amounted to the kind of gambling that
only happens after 4 am in Las Vegas. Let’s absolutely have this guy
underwrite our schools. What could go wrong that hasn’t already many
times over?

Subjecting our public school system to the free market requires us to
accept that hopped-up Wall Street bankers will mess up, schools will
close, and sooner or later, someone will have to choose between
increasing shareholder returns and improving some kid’s education.
Failure is not only an option. When it comes to Wall Street, failure is
inevitable.

The specter of resegregating our schools along racial and economic
lines under the cloak of school choice presents a more daunting future
for a state that is growing poorer, browner, and younger. When it comes
to schools, the question isn’t whether we’re going to have charter
schools or public schools. We have both now. When it comes to schools,
the real choice is whether we are all in this together or if it’s every
man for himself.

1 comment:

Anonymous
said...

Hey if some parents could get the state to fund a private school...oh sorry - I mean charter school for their kid which is free from many of the state's mandates and avoids spending resources on at risk kids who require more support, don't you think some folks would be doing just that. Charter schools are a staked deck in most cases and those who create and support them are just card counters trying to beat the house.

KSN&C

Why This Blog?

So far as we know, we only get one lifetime. So, when I "retired" in 2004, after 31-years in public education, I wanted to do something different. I wanted to teach, write and become a student again.

I have listened to so many commentaries over the years about what should be done to improve Kentucky's schools - written largely by folks who have never tried to manage a classroom, run a school, or close an achievement gap. I came to believe that I might have something to offer.

I moved, in 1985, from suburban northern Kentucky to what was then the state’s flagship district - Fayette County. I have had a unique set of experiences to accompany my journey through KERA’s implementation. I have seen children grow to graduate and lead successful lives. I have seen them go to jail and I have seen them die. I have been amazed by brilliant teachers, dismayed by impassive bureaucrats, disappointed by politicians and uplifted by some of Kentucky’s finest school children. When I am not complaining about it, I will attest that public school administration is critically important work.

Democracy is run by those who show up. In our system of government every citizen has a voice, but only if they choose to use it.

This blog is totally independent; not supported or sponsored by any institution or political organization. I will make every effort to fully cite (or link to) my sources. Please address any concerns to the author.

On the campaign trail...with my wife Rita

An action shot: The Principal...as a much younger man.

Faculty Senate Chair

Serving as Mace Bearer during the Inauguration of Michael T. Benson as EKU's 12th president.

Professin'

Lecturing on the history of Berea College to Berea faculty and staff, 2014.

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